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Lean rolls with cucumber

Lean Cucumber Sushi Rolls

Lenten, yet filling, delicious, versatile, and very good for you. Lenten, because there's no butter, milk, fish, and so on. Filling, because everything here is as balanced as can be. Delicious — how could it not be, with so many good things in it? Versatile, because you can pair cucumber with all kinds of add-ins! And healthy, since there's nothing unnecessary.

This food may not be from our own backyard, but it will appeal to more than just those who keep a fast. Anyone who watches their weight, or simply takes a mindful approach to everything — food included — will enjoy it.

These rolls — good for an everyday meal as well as for fancier variations — are served with wasabi, ginger, soy sauce, and, of course, chopsticks.

wella

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Short-grain rice

Water

Cucumbers

Bell pepper

Soy sauce

Rice vinegar

Mayonnaise

Nori

Wasabi sauce (to taste)

Pickled ginger

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 11 % 3 g

Fats 4 % 1 g

Carbohydrates 86 % 24 g

110 kcal

GI: 13 / 88 / 0

Cooking method

Cooking time: 45 min

Step 1:

Use a special short-grain rice, the kind sold in stores (sushi rice, i.e. Japanese varieties). If your budget is tight, buy a local one — but not the cheapest, or it'll cook down to mush. Cook it according to the directions. First, rinse it under the tap and drain off the cloudy water until it runs clear.
Step 2:

Add water to the rice in a 1:1 ratio. Cook the rice without salting it. Once the water boils, cook for about a quarter of an hour, then let it stand, covered, for 10 minutes. That's how it worked for me, but again — follow the directions for whatever rice you have.
Step 3:

While that's going, we have time to cut the peeled cucumber into sticks. To make the rolls taste and look even better, I also cut up some bell pepper. You can skip it if you've decided to make cucumber-only rolls.
Step 4:

So, the rice is done. Stir in a mixture of soy sauce and rice vinegar. Mix it all together and cover for about 5 minutes. Then uncover it, since the rice needs to cool.
Step 5:

Once the rice has cooled a bit, lay out a special (bamboo) mat, or an ordinary kitchen towel if you don't have one. By the way, place the nori with the rough side facing up toward you.
Step 6:

Set a bowl of water nearby and, dipping your hands in it each time, spread out a thin layer of rice. Thin, because otherwise you won't taste the filling — the rice will overpower it.
Step 7:

Carefully arrange the filling down the middle — cucumber (in your case), with pepper too (which is what I decided to do this time).
Step 8:

Brush it thinly (again, so as not to drown out the taste of the filling) with vegan mayonnaise. You can drizzle the filling with soy sauce, for example, or whatever you prefer — say, a thin smear of wasabi.
Step 9:

That's it — let's roll it up, using the mat to help. And don't forget to leave about 3/4 inch (1.5–2 cm) bare along the far edge.
Step 10:

And there's our roll, ready.
Step 11:

At the end, remember to dampen the bare strip with water, finish rolling, and press the roll firmly with your hands to compact the rice and bind it to the filling. Let it sit like that, wrapped in the mat, for a moment.
Step 12:

Cut it with a sharp knife. And serve!

A few more tips. When you spread rice on the nori, remember to leave 3/4 inch (1.5–2 cm) of bare space along the far edge, and don't pack the sheet too densely. The rice should lie in a thin layer, or the rolls will come out enormous — which isn't very attractive. Rolls should look elegant. They're tricky to cut if you don't know the secret — and there are two. First, a sharp knife. Second, wetting the blade with water every single time you're about to cut. And finally, don't cut the roll while the rice is even slightly warm, or it will fall apart. Don't overdo it when wetting your hands — moisture can get onto the nori sheet, softening it so it tears. If that happens, roll it up anyway and then let it sit out in the air; you'll see the sheet recover. If you know you'll use up all the ingredients you've just prepped, go ahead. But if you're making it just once, you can halve the recipe, or store ingredients — for example, keep the rice so it doesn't dry out or pick up other smells in the fridge. A lean roll can include, besides lenten ingredients, both fish and caviar, since there are days during the fast when these are allowed. So on those days you can add pieces of salmon or other tasty fish, and any kind of caviar, to the cucumber. If you don't have cream cheese (and it isn't allowed during the fast anyway), use vegan mayonnaise — it'll round out the flavor of the roll.